(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a game of skill and judgment which may be played by two or more players on a hexagonal game board having a matrix of contiguous hexagonally-shaped spaces disposed thereon, and in which playing pieces in the shape of an equilateral hexagon are alternately played by each player in an attempt to form a continuous path on the board defined by a distinctive color or design on certain of the playing pieces. Different categories of playing pieces, all of which are the same general shape and size, may be provided, i.e. offensive pieces, defensive pieces, and offensive-defensive pieces.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Game boards having playing pieces which may be played by two or more players by alternately placing the pieces on a pre-marked board to construct a line or similar designation from one peripheral edge of the board to another edge are known. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 3,404,890 to Christy relates to a game apparatus played on a game board in which the object of forming a path across the board is accomplished by the placement of mechanical pieces or links on the board. The links must be connected to posts of the same color in order to form a continuous path. The players may block the chains the opponent is trying to build by means of rods which are adapted to be placed inside one or more hollow cylinder members or post members which are mounted on the board.
Game boards having octagonal playing pieces which two or more players may alternately place on a pre-marked board are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,695,615 to Shoptaugh. In such game apparatus, octagonal pieces when placed together will define a square shape at the center thereof. Each of the playing pieces has at least one line across the piece in different configurations. The squares drawn at the centers of the octagonal pieces may also have lines across them in different configurations. The object of the game is to line up the pieces in such a way that a continuous line is formed across the board from one starting line to another, making use of both the lines on the octagonal playing pieces and on the squares.
Game boards having an array of hexagonally-shaped apertures or spaces therein and a plurality of hexagonally-shaped pieces adapted to fit in the apertures or spaces are also known as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,992,010 to Mattenson. In such game apparatus the playing pieces include an arrow-shaped direction indicator on each piece and a travel distance indicator. The object is to end at the point of beginning or at some other preselected point with a limited selection of varied distance movements available to be selected by each player.
Generally, such path puzzle games of the type described above are either too simple to challenge the skill and judgment of the adult player after he has once mastered the basic rules and technique of play, or the rules and strategy involved are too complicated for children to master. It is furthermore found, with regard to such games, that play between an adult who has once mastered the rules and techniques of strategy and a child or another adult who has never before played the game is not challenging or interesting due to the different levels of skill and relative sophistication of the players.
The game apparatus of the present invention is designed to provide a game of skill and judgment, which can be played by two, three, four, or six players, that is relatively simple for children to understand, but that is also challenging for the adult player who has once mastered the basic rules as well as the techniques of strategy and tactics involved in playing the game at a high level of sophistication. The game may be played at many different levels of skill, and many varieties of the standard game may be played. Players with different relative levels of skill, furthermore, may play a competitive and interesting game by utilization of various handicapping techniques, several examples of which will be described herein.